Wild Era 2: A LitRPG Progression Epic, page 9
Without them, it would be difficult to put his knowledge to use.
Now his hands would be steadier while carving runes and his mana flow would be stronger and purer, resulting in better items.
The Path’s rewards for the dungeons weren’t over yet, so when he was done, it spoke again.
For completing this dungeon at an Effective Level of 110, you have earned a unique Ability reward.
An appropriate reward has been determined.
You are granted the Innate Ability: Spell Disruption (Basic).
This ability allows you to channel your mana or soul energy into a disrupting force and to break apart opposing spells. Higher level spells are more difficult to disrupt, but as this ability advances, your skill at it will improve.
At the Basic tier, you gain the ability to sharpen your energy into a disrupting blade, which you can wield against enemy spells or mana shields. It is most effective within your own aura, but it can be used at range as well, with a decreased effect.
Eventually, this ability can be sustained as a minor domain effect, weakening and disrupting enemy spells in your location, as well as applying an innate disrupting effect to your own spells and attacks.
A wave of shimmering light flowed through Kelin’s spirit as the new ability settled in. He felt an awareness of how to sharpen his mana into a disrupting blade suddenly leap forward.
It was different from the simple mana blade he used for his artisan subclass, which just let him cut materials. This blade cycled mana through a strangely distorted pattern that could break opposing spells.
He’d seen many forms of mana disruption in the past, but he was impressed by the simplicity of the ability's structure.
It was more efficient and powerful than what he could manage on his own.
There was also a trace of a higher concept in it, one that he didn’t recognize. If he had to guess, it was either a Law of Disruption or something related to Destruction.
It would take a lot of work, but with that echo of a Law, the ability had the potential to reach Heroic.
If he’d had it before, he would have had an easier time breaking through the lich’s mana shield, as well as the Silver Hand’s spells, although it still would have been difficult against the higher density.
For completing the First Clear of this dungeon and slaying two bosses, you have earned the highest level of Treasure Reward it can offer.
As the difficulty of the bosses was higher than usual, the rewards will be upgraded to the Rare tier.
A golden sphere of light appeared in front of Kelin. It resolved into a small treasure chest that was made of polished mistwood with a silvery grain with a golden clasp on the front.
He flipped it open and saw two items sitting inside on a red cushion.
There were two glowing crystal orbs that shone with elemental essence.
One was a bright sapphire that flowed like it had liquid waves inside and that radiated an intense blue light, while the other was a brilliant emerald hue that shone with the verdant green of a forest.
He already knew what they were, but he analyzed each of them.
Water Elemental Orb (Rare).
Wood Elemental Orb (Rare).
Elemental Orbs are the condensed essence of the elements. They can be fused into an enchantment of the same affinity and greatly enhance its power, or with greater risk, be transferred into a being’s body, similarly enhancing the strength of a physique.
They can also be used to enhance an elemental ability, providing a chance to improve its foundation and tier, and if consumed, there is a slim chance that an elemental orb can grant the matching affinity or improve one that is already there.
The two orbs matched the dungeon’s affinity, which was also for Water and Wood.
Elemental orbs were in the highest tier of elemental reward that a dungeon at the Basic Evolution could offer, and they were rare even in the Second and Third Evolution dungeons.
Uncommon ones were expensive enough, but Rare orbs were worth a small fortune.
They had a much higher chance of granting an affinity or improving an ability, and if they were infused into an artifact, it would transform into the highest similar grade of elemental material.
A simple stone artifact would be upgraded to something like Ocean’s Heart Sapphire, a Rare-grade Water material that was highly sought after.
These orbs were something that the Baron would be very upset about if he knew he had missed out on the opportunity to collect them.
Kelin gave the orbs a long look, and then he closed the chest and stored it away.
The affinities they had weren’t of great use to him, but he would hold them until Yao and Naomi got their classes.
If they had a Water or Wood affinity, he would help them use them or create an artifact for each of them. If they didn’t, he would trade them through the guild for something that fit.
He already had a couple of Fire and Water-aligned items for them from earlier dungeons, so their futures had a great deal of promise.
The Path had a couple of final notifications for him, which echoed in his mind.
For completing this remnant, you are awarded 110 gold coins and 25 silver coins in the local currency.
You are awarded an additional 30 gold coins as a bonus for the dungeon’s difficulty and danger rating.
Your guild badge has recorded your accomplishments, which will be acknowledged by the Stars Alliance when you return to a guild hall.
220 Guild Credits have been added to your badge.
150 bonus credits have been added for completing the local Alliance Quest: Scout the Dungeons.
Report the information about the undead affliction to the guild and additional bonuses might be granted.
With that, the voice of the Path faded away.
It was a significant amount of gold and guild credits, more than a Level 80ish dungeon would normally have offered, but about right for a Level 110 one.
His Effective Level had paid off in that regard.
Kelin spent a few moments collecting the monster cores from the wolf and the mage, as well as the most significant parts of the other loot, including the mage’s finger bones, which were highly infused with necrotic energy.
They were at the Rare grade, so they were worth selling at the guild.
There was also a large amount of hide from the wolf, which could be turned into talismans or enchanted clothing, as well as its fangs, claws, and tail.
The materials were at the peak of the Uncommon grade and there was a lot of it.
Once he had everything stored away, he dusted himself off and turned toward the dungeon portal, which had appeared at the edge of the clearing.
He walked through and the familiar starlit darkness of the portal flowed around him.
There was an endless moment where he felt suspended in the Void as stars spun past, their color whispering of magic and the elements.
Then he was through, standing near the set of guards that Sandren had left at the entrance.
He gave them a nod and a brief report about the condition of the undead inside, and then he set off back toward Highmist.
After this, he planned to take a break in town and repair his gear. It would be good to rest a little and prepare for the First Evolution.
He was up to Level 94 and closing in on 100, but before that could happen, he needed to make sure his foundation was as stable as possible.
Rising quickly through the levels within an Evolution was one thing, since it was just an accumulation of energy, but the Evolution itself was a far more critical matter.
For the best advancement, it had to be perfect. Otherwise his future chances of reaching the Seventh Evolution would be damaged.
That meant taking full advantage of the guild’s resources, and especially its training halls.
What he needed would be expensive, but with the amount he’d just earned in the dungeon, he should be able to cover it.
If not, there were other ways to accomplish it.
In between those things, he had a baron to take down and there was no time like the present to get started.
Ahh, and his date with Sandren.
A smile appeared at the thought, which had risen unbidden as a reminder that she was waiting for him at the guild.
It had only been about a day, so hopefully she was still there.
Chapter 7
Highmist
An hour later, the walls of Highmist rose in front of Kelin.
He passed through the gate with a flash of his guild badge at the guards. They looked surprised at the Low Steel rank it displayed, since he wasn’t at the First Evolution yet, but it was close enough that they didn’t pay much attention.
Low Steel quests started at Level 100 and went up to Level 150 or so, and it often took until Level 125 or higher to complete them and earn the rank. Achieving it before the First Evolution, like he had, was a mark of significant ability.
It usually took several quests to prove your ability and earn a new rank, but the Path had upgraded it for him after his brief stint as a guild inspector, which was a rare and direct route.
It was the middle of the night, but it didn’t make much difference to the city, which was still lively, even if it was calmer and quieter than during the day. As levels and Constitution went up, people needed less sleep, so there was always some activity going on.
The streets were lit by colorful orbs of mana and glowing crystals, lending everything an air of mystery and magic. Here and there, street performers tossed magical fireworks into the sky and made scenes from stories appear.
On the way to the guild, he stopped by some food stands he liked and picked up a number of hot and cold meals.
The food stalls did a lot of business with late night visitors, since the established restaurants tended to follow a daylight schedule.
He got a collection of different things that he stored away for later.
There was grilled meat with tangy sauce in a flour wrap, bowls of spicy stew with wild meat, some roasted vegetables that had a high mana content, flasks of ale, wine, various types of fruits, honeyed snacks, and more.
There were also some desserts made of fruit and shaved ice that Highmist was known for, which had mint and colorful honey syrups on them. Some of them were fashioned into intricate spirals and animal shapes.
Most of the food was served on large silvery leaves. Depending on how they were cut and bent, they worked as plates and bowls. The plant was called mistleaf, and it was a shrub that grew wild all across the plains near the city.
It was more than he could eat, but he was going to take some meals to Yao and Naomi, to make sure that they weren’t bored with what they had, and it would be good to have some things while he was working later, either in the guild or in a dungeon.
The guild had a tavern that served meals to the kids and all of the other guests, which was also open around the clock, but variety was the spice of life.
When he arrived at the guild, he swung by the front counter.
Jesra wasn’t there, so he kept the chit chat to a minimum and reported the results of the dungeon, focusing on the undead presence.
The guild was his ally, but they didn't need to know about his Effective Level or that the Path had selected him as a prodigy.
“I’ll flag it and send it up to the captain,” the clerk said. His name was Heren and he was a lean and official type, but his words were polite as he took the report. “That’s not the only dungeon that’s been tampered with, I’m afraid.”
Kelin just chuckled in agreement.
“Is Captain Sandren on duty tonight?” he asked.
“It’s Captain Tures right now,” Heren replied. “But I can make a note to refer the matter to Captain Sandren as well.”
He ran his hand across the runestone at the desk to check and looked up in surprise.
“It seems Captain Sandren has already left a message for you,” he said as he reached into the air. A glowing message rune flashed into existence on his palm and he offered it to Kelin.
“Here you go.”
Kelin smiled as he reached out to touch the rune. As soon as he did, a message flared into his awareness.
“Kelin, I’m sorry that this message is brief. I’m looking forward to other things with you, but there are a few things you should know as soon as you’re back in town.
First, I’ve used the guild’s authority to lock down most of Baron Verasun’s dungeon teams and I’m causing him some trouble politically to keep him busy.
I’ve also leveled some serious charges against him and a hefty fine, but it will take a little while before it’s settled.
He is furious about his butler’s death and his daughter joining the guild, but he’s as cold as a snake so he's using other means to show it. He disowned the girl and has shown no remorse, but he’s trying to blame the guild, me, and you specifically for killing his people in the dungeon.
He’s saying that we framed them all and got his daughter caught up in it, and that of course he’s the innocent party who just wanted to clear the dungeon in the name of Highmist.
It’s a bunch of nonsense, but he has a good deal of influence in the city, so people are listening to him.
I suspect he’ll try something more elaborate soon, and that he’ll want to clean up loose ends, so keep an eye out for your safety, as well as those friends of yours.
They wanted to head back to Cerith, but I talked them out of it. They’re staying at the guild here for now, which is the safest place in the city.
Highmist is Verasun's power base, but for that reason it's also where he has to be the most cautious about what he does, and I'm keeping an eye on him. Our guild hall is also stronger than Cerith's.
There aren’t many high-level assassins he could send after you without the guild knowing about it, but there are less direct methods, so you need to be careful.
In other news, we found two other dungeons that Sarathia tampered with immediately after that one, and one of them was already breaking.
They both had undead inside.
I’ve dispatched guild teams to deal with them, but I doubt that’s the end of it. It looks like Sarathia was trying to start an undead plague and really disrupt Celadon.
Your help finding that one has brought it to the guild’s attention in time, so we should be able to stop it, but I’m heading out myself to scout the region for anything out of the ordinary.
I’ll be back soon. Take care of yourself.
P.S. I’m looking forward to that date.
The message ended there and the rune disintegrated.
Kelin considered the contents for a moment, but they didn’t significantly change his plans, so he just made a note of them.
It looked like Sandren was going to be busy for a day or two.
He was a little disappointed she wasn’t waiting for him, but she had work to do and so did he. He would catch up with her when she was back.
In the meantime, it was the middle of the night and the kids would be asleep, so he booked a room for a week and headed off to the guild shops.
Training could wait until the morning, but he wanted to offload his loot as soon as possible and get it out of his bags.
The same bored guild clerk was at the sales desk again, but he woke up as Kelin started unloading his spatial items.
There was nowhere near enough space on the counter, so the clerk had to start transferring everything into a spatial crate as Kelin continued to unload it.
Except for the things he needed for crafting, he emptied all of the materials, weapons, and random items he’d acquired from the last two dungeons, as well as all of the cores under Level 80.
There were a few hundred of them.
He’d collected about two hundred cores from the Coralfire dungeon and another hundred and fifty from the Rising Mist dungeon.
Once he sold off the lower ones, he still had about sixty at Levels 80-85, and a few dozen more at Levels 105-110.
He was planning to use them for the training halls.
Cores and mana crystals were what powered the simulations and made up the main cost of running them. He’d brought enough back that he would be able to afford it for quite a while.
The halls could do both combat and crafting simulations, but only combat practice was useful at his current level.
Crafting practice could be accomplished with real materials. It was only worth using the halls for it when materials were hard to find.
With real materials, even if you failed most of the time, there were usually still a few successes to cover some of the cost.
He sold off all of his Elite cores, since they were worth more than usual for their level but very important for his plans. Each of them was worth a dozen or more regular cores.
After that, he got rid of piles of necrotic gems, Coral Sea Gems, and all of the other extra materials he’d collected, along with his old bracers that were still broken.
The total was impressive.
“4,107 gold,” the clerk said as he counted it all. He looked slightly impressed, but his eyelids were beginning to droop again.
It was a decent amount, but it was only enough to buy one or two pieces of First Evolution gear or a handful of major healing potions.
It would all be gone soon.
Half of the value came from the Silver Hand of Death’s finger bones and the materials from the Grey Lord of the Mists, which weren’t even supposed to be there.
If he’d run both dungeons with a full team of five adventurers, they would have only ended up with about eight hundred gold each. If a run went badly and someone had to use a major potion to regenerate a limb, it would be a complete wash.
That was why it was essential to have either a good healer or a wealthy backer.
One failure could ruin a career.
On average, a Level 80 core cost about a gold, which was double a Level 40 core, and a Level 100 core was about a gold and a half.
There was never any lack of demand for them, either for buying or selling. Cores and materials at that level went into a bottomless pit of crafting, training hall practice, and more.
